


Revisiting the Past

by ems4179



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Gen, President Shinra was a tool, Rufus is a neat freak, by tool I mean evil and vile, dust is gross, especially to his son(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-24
Updated: 2014-12-24
Packaged: 2018-03-03 03:53:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2837108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ems4179/pseuds/ems4179
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set post game, Rufus finally pays a visit to his childhood home. Characters are not mine, I earn no money from my writing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Revisiting the Past

The house he'd grown up in was as welcoming as ever – first the key had refused to turn in the lock. When after a lot of effort, it finally deigned to turn, the door itself refused to open. He sighed and stepped back to allow Rude to shoulder it open. The wood had clearly swollen during the bad winter they had suffered through.

As if they'd agreed on it earlier, Rude stepped outside once more and made his way back to wait in the car - Reno stayed at his side of course, he was grateful for that. After everything, Rufus doubted he could do this on his own but more than one Turk would have been overkill.

He turned to look at Reno when he felt a gentle nudge in his side. The redhead smiled faintly at him, for once entirely still. "After you, Sir…" Rufus even managed a ghost of a smile at the formality – so unlike his favourite Turk. He nodded once and walked in.

It was dark inside of course – the windows on the landing had been boarded up after President Shinra's funeral and no one had stepped inside since.

It took his questing fingers a few moments to find the light switch. It took a few moments more for his eyes to adjust. When they did, he looked around noting the thick layer of dust that coated every surface. He took a few more steps in to reach the only piece of furniture in the reception hall – a table. He wrinkled his nose as the scent of abandonment finally registered with him. Idly he traced a gloved finger over the tabletop, fascinated momentarily by the contrast between the newly revealed surface and the dust.

After a moment of staring blankly, Rufus lifted his hand and peered at the dust on the tip of his gloved finger. A fraction of a second later, he remembered reading once that household dust was composed mostly of dead skin cells. That meant that the dust was a part of his father...He grimaced and yanked the glove from his hand. He didn't want **anything** of the old man so close to him ever again!

By the time the glove hit the ground, Reno was at his side, offering a new, untainted pair.

The blonde smiled faintly and took the gloves with an almost silent thank you. When he'd pulled them on and dropped the other by its twin, Rufus decided he had spent more than enough time in the house already. He headed upstairs being careful not to touch anything else – now that he'd remembered about the dust, he had to actually remind himself to breathe because he **really** hated the thought that he was effectively breathing a part of his father into his lungs. 

_Just get this done, Rufus. You can do that at least. For her._ Rufus headed into the bedroom - which he hadn't seen since he was a pre-teen when his father sent him to Junon - and kneeled down by the bed, forcing himself not to think about the dirt or dust that could be collecting on the knees of his trousers as he did so. His discomfort was worth it for the prize and he could always burn the trousers later. Maybe even the house too... 

A few moments of searching finally produced what he was looking for – one very old, very crumpled photograph of his beloved mother. He held it almost reverentially in his hands and stood. He nodded to Reno. "Let's go." 

He walked out of the house then, not looking back. It was the last time he ever entered the place. 


End file.
